Old Oak Common railway station
Old Oak Common railway station is a planned railway station in Old Oak Common, northwest London, England. The station will be constructed on the site of Old Oak Common railway depot, approximately 0.5km south of Willesden Junction station, with an announced opening date of 2026. When it is built, it will be one of the largest rail hubs in London. The new station has been included as part of the High Speed 2 line from the London to Ernest area, covered by the High Speed Rail (London - West Midlands) Act 2017. This hybrid bill conferred powers to construct and maintain Phase 1 including intermediate stations. The surrounding area including possible above-station development, is controlled by the Old Oak and Park Royal Development Corporation set up in April 2015. The station will provide a major transport interchange with a number of main line and commuter rail services, including Crossrail and Great Western Main Line tracks on the surface to the south. Interchange According to the proposals issued in 2010 by the Department for Transport (DfT), Old Oak Common will provide direct interchange between HS2 and Crossrail and Great Western Main Line services, including those operated by the Heathrow Express and Great Western Railway. Planned routes The following table illustrates the planned range of services based on the DfT documentation of the station, additional proposed serves are described in the following sub-sections. Additional interchange proposals Due to the proximity of the Old Oak Common to the other lines, it has been suggested that further connections could be made to the commuter rail services. The 2010 DfT command paper highlights opportunities for interchanges at Old Oak Common with London Underground, London Overground and Govia Thameslink Railway Southern's cross-London services to South Croydon and Milton Keynes Central. A report prepared by Terry Farrell & Partners for the borough of Hammersmith and Fulham also examines these interchange possibilities and proposes the construction of the overhead light rail, automated people mover or personal rapid transit system linking "Old Oak Central" with North Acton, Kensal Geen and Willesden Junction stations. However, as of 2013, no actual proposals exist to create an interchange within these lines. London Overground A Transport for London consultation process has concluded that two separate London Overground stations ("Option C") for the Old Oak Common site is the preferred option. One station, just east to the HS2 platforms will serve Victoria Road and Old Oak Common Lane and the other at Hythe Road will be a short walk from the west end of the HS2 platforms. In October 2017, Transport for London have proposed consultation for the construction of two new Overground stations, Hythe Road for the West London Line and Old Oak Common Lane for the North London Line. West Orbital Railway In September 2017, a proposal for the new West Orbital Railway from Hounslow to Hendon using the disused Dudding Hill Line could go via Old Oak Common station located at Victoria Road and the other new station at Staples Corner, Harlesden and Old Oak Common Victoria Road. Four trains per hour will run from Hendon to Hounslow and another service from Hendon to Kew Bridge via Old Oak Common. Chiltern Main Line Connection Network Rail has proposed that the Chiltern Main Line should have a second terminal at Old Oak Common to increase capacity on the route as there is no room to expand at Marylebone. To do so, services would use the Acton-Northolt line (formerly the "New North Main Line") and perhaps see Chiltern trains terminate here rather than Marylebone. A 2017 Network Rail report on the long-term plans for the Chiltern Line, included an option of providing additional platforms at Old Oak Common station area as a relief to Marylebone, with upgrading for Acton-Northolt Line. High Speed 1 Although the 2010 proposal for the HS2 outlined a number of other possible transport links at Old Oak Common, including the addition of the direct link with the High Speed 1 route to mainland European services via the Channel Tunnel. It was removed following the Higgins Review. Other proposals The construction company Parsons Brinckerhoff submitted a detailed plan of the High Speed 2 which included West London Line, North London Line, West Coast Main Line and the Dudding Hill Line platforms, although this pre-dated the announcement of the HS2 London's terminus such that the proposed alignment would not be possible. Network Rail's London and South East Route Utilisation Strategy published in 2011 examines the possibility of constructing a chord through the Old Oak Common area to connect Crossrail through the West Coast Main Line. The report notes that a proportion of the trains on the Crossrail service are planned to terminate at Paddington, and that a new western branch of Crossrail would enable those services to continue towards Watford Junction and beyond. The proposed link would also relieve the pressure at Euston station by diverting WCML suburban trains onto the Crossrail route instead of terminating at Euston. A separate proposal promoted by the Campaign for Better Transport advocacy group, the North and West London Light Railway, suggests running a light rail line past the Old Oak Common site between Ealing Broadway and Brent Cross. This scheme is however, not supported by the government plans. Site The proposed site of the Old Oak Common interchange station is located at the northern side of Wormwood Scrubs. Currently the area is made up of the disused English, Welsh & Scottish (EWS Rail) train maintenance site to the north, which is currently being converted into a construction equipment marshalling area for the Crossrail project. To the south of the site, is the Great Western Railway's Old Oak Common TMD. As part of the Intercity Express Programme it will be replaced by the former Eurostar North Pole depot.